Update On RICO Subpoenas On XOM Regarding Climate Change -- Going Nowhere Fast -- July 2, 2016; Brexit? What Brexit?

An op-ed in the New York Post. Archived in case the link is broken. Again, had it not been for other bloggers (see sidebar at the right), I would have missed this; it has to do with RICO case against Exxon Mobil with regard to global warming.

****************************

US Debt Jumps Almost $100 Billion In One Day

From The Washington Examiner:

Total government debt hit a record $19.38 trillion on Thursday, up nearly $98 billion from the day before. It's the first time it has ever exceeded $19.3 trillion.

The debt will soar higher still in the coming months, and is expected to approach $20 trillion by the time President Obama leaves office.

If Paul Krugman and Elizabeth Warren are not concerned, I am not concerned. Unlike Great Britain, Fitch still has a AAA rating for US credit. Great Britain: AA. There only a handful of countries with a Fitch rating higher than the US (97), including Germany (100).

*******************************

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's Jobs Program Stimulates NY Economy

Speaking of New York, this is quite incredible, from The Kansas City Star (where Ernest got his start):

A signature job creation program created by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has generated only 408 new jobs in its first two years, according to a state report quietly published on a state website Friday evening.

The program, Start-Up NY, uses tax-free zones at colleges and universities to attract companies. The report says 159 businesses and their employees have received $1.19 million in tax benefits so far while investing $13 million in the economy. The state also set aside up to $175 million for in-state and out-of-state advertising and marketing campaigns to promote Start-Up NY as well as Cuomo's economic development proposals.

Seventy-six jobs were created in 2014, Start-Up's first full year, and another 332 last year.

Cuomo regularly praises Start-Up and other programs for jumpstarting the economy. But the unceremonious release of the report, three months late and at the start of the busy three-day July 4 weekend, suggests the administration isn't ready to celebrate the results.

$175 million for advertising and all they got to show for it was a measly 400 jobs. I don't even want to do the math, but it looks like New Yorkers have a lot of cash to burn. Of course, the ban on fracking doesn't help the state. But it makes "everyone" feel better.

Speaking of jobs and The Kansas City Star:

Kansas City Star, Roger Miller

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/national-international/article87238612.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/national-international/article87238612.html#storylink=c 

*********************

Brexit?

From MarketWatch:

• U.S. stocks booked a fourth straight daily gain Friday, and the Dow and S&P 500 marked their best week this year.

A day or two after the market cratered following the Brexit vote, I sent my wife an e-mail with this short note: it will blow over in a week. I can't remember if I posted that; I doubt it.

Not only did the market as a whole have a great week, but it wasn't simply a matter of getting back to where it was. The number of new 52-week highs was quite impressive.

And it's alright ...

Right Back Where We Started From, Maxine Nightingale
" ... and if you get hurt by the little things I say, i can put that smile back on your face."

Wow, so many memories.

Just a thought: this might become the theme song for Angela Merkel, the EU, and Great Britain.